Josh Hill Turns Professional After Walker Cup Winning Putt

Josh Hill has turned professional weeks after holing the putt that won the Walker Cup for Great Britain & Ireland, according to Golf Monthly.

The Englishman confirmed the move on Instagram, describing the start of a "new chapter" as a "lifelong dream becomes reality", with the announcement made at the Home of Golf.

Hill will make his first start as a professional on the DP World Tour at the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship next week.

His amateur career ended on the highest possible note. Hill's putt on the 18th completed the largest comeback in Walker Cup history for GB&I, sealing victory over Tyler Watts after an up-and-down from a greenside bunker on the final hole set up the winning chance.

That bunker shot, played to four feet, has been held up as the moment that defined the contest, and one that showed the composure Hill will now need to draw on in the professional game.

Hill's rise has been rapid since childhood. Growing up in Dubai, he won the 2019 Al Ain Open on the MENA Tour at the age of 15, becoming the youngest player to win a professional tournament awarding Official World Golf Ranking points.

He also represented GB&I in the Jacques Leglise Trophy before four years at the University of Tennessee, where he recorded seven top-ten finishes and 18 top-25s across his collegiate career.

In his statement, Hill thanked those who shaped his path to the professional ranks, including his family, coaches, England Golf, the Emirates Golf Federation, Titleist, Walker Cup captain Dean Robertson, the University of Tennessee and Coach Webb.

He added a personal note of thanks to his parents, saying: "thank you for the endless support and sacrifice. None of this would be possible without you."

Attention now turns to how Hill fares in his paid debut at the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship, where the Walker Cup heroics at Lahinch will offer little guide to life on the DP World Tour.